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Disappointed in Community & Attitude
Shelby13
Member Posts: 79
Vendetta has possibilities.. but unfortunately the community.. or at least the community I was exposed to, really hurts this game.
There are serious (to me) factional issues.. as in, forced PvP is common and seems to actually be encouraged as a method of revenue. New players are not protected from piracy even in the so-called no-fight-zones. So long as the attacker has enough positive faction points, they can get away with murder, in fact.. they profit from it. Extortion is encouraged.. its a way of life in this game.
I like the games interface, the background story was good, in-depth, and added to the fun. The instructions are good, almost purely text-based but still quick to read and fast to apply.
Where the game ultimately fails is community attitude towards new players. Asking a question will certainly get you flamed... either in game chat or on the forum. This game is primarily a 'clique' niche.. if your not into simply preying on other players.. don't bother.
Also, the community is very, very small. A few dozen players at the same time. Odds are, you won't fit into the 'clique' that dominates this game and its forums. There is simply not enough players to form a moral majority.. one that puts the natural checks & balances to attract a broader population... that includes helpers.. community builders.. leaders.
Unfortunately, no matter how good the coding or graphics or interface.. in the end its supposed to be a MMO.. and the 'multiplayer' aspect is lacking .. in both playerbase size and spirit.
I will keep my eye on this game and see if it eventually matures in factional protection and playerbase diversity. As it is now, it is simply too small and the playerbase too aggressive for its own good.
SWG/STO/(SWTOR)
Comments
I'm sorry to hear about your experience, Shelby13. I think you'll find any online community has its share of trolls, Vendetta Online being no exception. The sandbox style gameplay means that you can be killed anywhere, so new players may feel griefed the first time they are obliterated. However, I think if you stick with the game a little while you'll find that avoiding combat is relatively simple and the community at large is generally very friendly and helpful. I am part of a guild that specializes in protecting traders and new players. We maintain a website, a list of active pirates, and an in-game help channel (4357). Most of the time players will eagerly answer anyone asking a question on general chat. There are also players who devote their time entirely to helping new players become acclimatized through the mentoring system. The thing is, people aren't psychic, you have to ask for help. I hope you give the community a second chance, if you do I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
The second part of your post I wanted to address was about extortion being encouraged. From the prey's perspective it may seem as though the predator is carrying all the cards, but in fact if you are killed in monitored space and are in good standing with the local faction your attacker will be hunted by the strike force and will have lost hours and hours worth of faction points. There are also turrets which defend nation space from intruders, so as long as you keep to nation space the advantage is yours. Of course there is nowhere completely safe, and in lawless greyspace anything goes. Once you reach Combat/Trade level 4 you will have access to equipment that makes getting away from an attacker virtually assured unless you are in the slowest trade ship in game. Most of these game mechanics make things harder for the extortionist, the opposite of encouraging it. Usually if you don't want to fight someone, you'll have no problems unless you are running your head against a wall.
As far as there being no community leaders or activities, these things just take a little time. I'll be the first to admit there is a learning curve to this game but once you get it, you'll find that there are things happening all the time whether it's helping a friend hunt hive queens so they can build that new blaster or flying patrol with a guildmate on the lookout for pirates or (from a pirate's perspective) stalking traders through the lawless wastes of greyspace. First impressions are varied, I hope I have given you pause to consider coming back around for a second or at least kept you from walking away with a bad taste in your mouth.
-Phaserlight [VPR] guild council
"The simple is the seal of the true and beauty is the splendor of truth" -Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar
Authored 139 missions in Vendetta Online and 6 tracks in Distance